Dr Hassan Ayariaga, the flagbearer of the All People's Congress (APC), has criticised Vice President Dr Mahamudu Bawumia and denounced his bid for the presidency.

Speaking in an interview on Onua FM on April 10, 2024, Ayariaga accused Bawumia of complicity in the economic downturn that has plagued the nation and rebuked his assertion that he is merely a "mate" to the government.

"If you look at the NPP, those who contested the presidential primaries were many, and that is a sign that Bawumia is not the best among them because he is a vice president.

"You are not an ordinary party member that we could say has never ruled before or been part of the party leadership. You are vice president, so if people are contesting against you that much, it means you have credibility issues," he said.

He contended that Bawumia's tenure as vice president has been marred by economic mismanagement, which has had dire consequences for the country.

He condemned Bawumia's recent statement distancing himself from the government, branding it as the "biggest betrayal in the history of politics."

He argued that, as vice president, Bawumia could not dissociate himself from the administration's failures, particularly regarding economic policies and management.

"You are a mate; that is why outsiders wanted him out to take the lead because they feel he has mismanaged the economy...and the fact that Bawumia is saying he is a mate, for me, that is a betrayal, the biggest betrayal in the history of politics.

"He has betrayed Nana Addo and betrayed the NPP. In 2016, Bawumia formed an economic management team and said that this was the best team in Ghana, calling them a solid team. So, what happened to the solid team?

"The solid team has brought us to the IMF with a debt stock of 600 billion Ghana cedis and outrageous market prices for goods and services.

"A solid team where inflation is high, the cost of doing business in Ghana has become the worst in history...and today he claims that he is a mate. At the time he was forming the solid team, was he a mate?" he asserted.

He accused Bawumia of deceiving the populace and betraying President Nana Akufo-Addo and the NPP by pleading for another chance despite his past shortcomings.

"So, it is a betrayal to the NPP, to President Akufo-Addo, and to Ghanaians. He is lying to Ghanaians. He is asking for another opportunity to fail, but he has already failed," he added.

Bawumia, on Wednesday (February 7), outlined his vision for Ghana in an address at the UPSA auditorium in Accra.

He stressed that despite being the driver's mate, "if, by the grace of God, you make me president, I will be in the driver's seat with constitutionally mandated authority to pursue my vision and my priorities.

He added: "My vision is to create a tent big enough to accommodate all our people, to tap into the resourcefulness and talents of our people irrespective of our different ethnic, political, and religious backgrounds, to channel our energies into building the kind of country that assures a food self-sufficient, safe, prosperous, and dignified future for all Ghanaians, to create sustainable jobs with meaningful pay for all, and for Ghana to participate fully in the fourth industrial revolution using systems and data."

This is not the first time he has touted his role as a driver's mate and an assistant to the president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

AM/SEA

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